AFTER eight years, seven number one records and eight million albums sold, pop favourites McFly show no signs of slowing down.

The band’s double platinum debut album Room on the Third Floor went straight to number one, giving them the distinction of being the youngest band since The Beatles to do so. The lads then went on to win a Brit award in 2005 and were introduced to the Queen during the same year.

Drummer Harry Judd, 25, admitted that fame had been a whirlwind. “When it first kicked off, you don’t have a chance to sit back and take it all in. I feel very lucky but you just kind of go with the flow.

“It’s a real privilege to be in this position,” he said, adding that their involvement in charity campaigns and being able to help raise money made it even better.

“I reckon when we won the Brit award, that’s when it really sunk in. Meeting the Queen was pretty big, too."

Harry, plus lead guitarists Tom Fletcher and Danny Jones and bassist Dougie Poynter, have been on tour for much of this year and will be performing to bank holiday crowds at Hampton Court’s Jolly Day Out on Sunday August 28.

Thanks to their regular performances, the lads are well-rehearsed and ready to rock the tranquil palace gardens, Harry said, and audiences could expect a ‘pretty slick show’.

“The atmosphere when we get on stage is always absolutely amazing,” he said. “Fortunately, we’ve got some great fans.”

He admitted that playing for a ‘family friendly’ concert like the Jolly Day Out was a different type of show but that the boys never really had to change their act according to their audience.

“We are pretty consistent and very conscious of wanting to put out a good show,” he said. “ It would be a very rare thing to see us slack off.”

Formed in 2004, McFly launched with the help of fellow band Busted, who invited the group to tour with them.

Unlike their pop predecessors, however, they are going from strength to strength and are working on their sixth album as they approach their eight-year anniversary.

What singles them out is the relationship each of them has with the other, with no suggestions of rivalry between members.

“I can’t imagine being in a band where people don't get on,” said Harry. “We all chill out together before shows and go and meet the fans.

“The most important thing for us is being able to have a career doing something we enjoy and that’s a lot of fun.

“For the fans, it’s about knowing us and our personalities, and that doubles their enjoyment of the music.”

Even during tours, he said, they never seemed to get in each others’ way too much – “but we have got quite a big tour bus so we can get away from each other if we have to,” he added.

Fans react differently to them around the world, Harry said, but having already played in Europe, South America and Asia this year, they were looking forward to coming back to the home fans.

“As soon as you are on stage, the nerves go,” he said.

“Whatever happens, these experiences stick with you and you have always got those memories.”